Danny Strong Tapped to Pen GUYS & DOLLS Remake for Fox

[ray-andallthatjazz86]

Posted: 12/16/13 at 1:12pm

According to Deadline.com. I hope it eventually gets made:

fter two and a half years of negotiations were completed earlier this year, 20th Century Fox is at last moving forward with its remake of Guys And Dolls. The studio has set Danny Strong to write the script adaptation. Strong scripted the final two installments of The Hunger Games: Mockingjay, after scripting Lee Daniels The Butler and adapting the Dan Brown Da Vinci Code sequel The Lost Symbol. This is the project based on Damon Runyon’s short stories that captured the rogue gangsters and gamblers of the 1920s and 1930s, which starred Marlon Brando and Frank Sinatra. Over the years, those interested included Bob Fosse, Baz Luhrmann, and Hugh Jackman, and I reported earlier this year that the studio was intrigued by the potential pairing of Channing Tatum and Joseph Gordon-Levitt, though there is no shortage of actors who want this. First, of course, they need a script.
Deadline.com

[darquegk]

Posted: 12/16/13 at 1:34pm

I wonder if this remake will change or keep one of the central unstated jokes/ironies of the classic Guys and Dolls script. These gangsters and gamblers are relative babes in the woods, who never commit a crime bigger than playing craps, as far as we can see, but are immediately put at a disadvantage when "real" crooks like the murderous Joey Biltmore or the menacing Big Jule show up on the scene.

I can easily see this rewrite maintaining the frothy old tone, or developing a more straight-up dark comedy tone, since mob drama is a big genre right now.

[madbrian]

Posted: 12/16/13 at 1:54pm

I guess Hathaway is a logical choice for Sarah, but Adelaide would be the challenging role to cast.

[Broadwaystar2]

Posted: 12/16/13 at 2:06pm

Analeigh Ashford as Adelaide

[darquegk]

Posted: 12/16/13 at 2:21pm

Alison Brie would be pretty funny as Adelaide- she sings well enough, and she has the juxtaposition of almost innocence and campy sexuality that the character needs, especially if they're going younger.

[Mister Matt]

Posted: 12/16/13 at 2:23pm

Megan Hitly seems a pretty obvious choice for Adelaide.

[Gothampc]

Posted: 12/16/13 at 2:33pm

I would love it if HBO or AMC or Netflix did a series where they dramatized all the stories. Some of the stories that didn't make it into the musical are just as wonderful.

[ray-andallthatjazz86]

Posted: 12/16/13 at 2:33pm

I can't imagine a scenario in which Alison Brie, Megan Hilty, or Annaleigh Ashford would be cast in arguably the best role in a multimillion movie musical, especially since the role doesn't call for a powerhouse singer like Effie did in DREAMGIRLS. Think more Rachel McAdams, Scarlett Johansson, Amy Adams, etc.

[ucjrdude902]

Posted: 12/16/13 at 2:34pm

I would LOVE to see Rachel McAdams take it but would she do it after Ryan Gosling was rumored to play Sky at one point? Awkwarddddd

[Gothampc]

Posted: 12/16/13 at 2:36pm

"Think more Rachel McAdams, Scarlett Johansson, Amy Adams, etc."

Think more Renee Zellwegger, because that's who they will cast.

[Gothampc]

Posted: 12/16/13 at 2:37pm

And you know that Anne Hathaway has already signed on to be Sarah. You just know it.

[darquegk]

Posted: 12/16/13 at 2:38pm

I've made the same argument that Gothampc made in favor of a gritty cable series based loosely on "Cabaret" and "The Berlin Stories," but a Damon Runyon comedy would be good too. I almost feel like it would be a good pick for if AMC were to launch its first high-profile animated series, since onstage or on the page Runyon's characters are so stylized and larger than life that they lend themselves to a much more stylized look. If it's live-action, it would look like "Dick Tracy," which might provoke a lawsuit.

Speaking of Guys and Dolls, when is it set? Is it set in the 1920s and 1930s of Runyon's writing, or the 1950s of its premiere?

[Gothampc]

Posted: 12/16/13 at 2:47pm

"I've made the same argument that Gothampc made in favor of a gritty cable series based loosely on "Cabaret" and "The Berlin Stories"

That would be a really great show with the right writers. Can't you just see a five minute cabaret act that comments on each episode?

Mad Men made the 1960s fashionable, another series could just as easily do the same thing with another decade. And why not mine the material of Damon Runyan or Isherwood?

[madbrian]

Posted: 12/16/13 at 2:52pm

Zellwegger is too much older than the males leads mentioned in the article. Scarlett Johansson would be ideal. If either Tatum or Levitt drop out, James Marsden would be perfect as Sky.

[ray-andallthatjazz86]

Posted: 12/16/13 at 2:53pm

Zellweger and Nicole Kidman were highly rumored for the version that was supposed to star Hugh Jackman and (or?) Russell Crowe. I know people hate her around here, but Zellweger would have been fantastic.
I like the idea of Rachel McAdams, and the Deadline article mentions Joseph Gordon-Levitt and Channing Tatum as potential leads, so Ryan Gosling might not be an issue. I'd also wouldn't be surprised if Kate Hudson is in the running. My top pick would be Kristen Wiig, followed by Kate Winslet.
I wonder if at this point Anne Hathaway is even interested in a role like Sarah Brown. It's certainly an iconic role in an iconic show, but she might be a little bored of playing the ingenue now that she's an Oscar winner. I'd see them going after people like Amanda Seyfried, Mia Wasikowswa, Rebecca Hall, and Anna Kendrick.

[SporkGoddess]

Posted: 12/16/13 at 3:03pm

Ugh, since Hollywood seems opposed to casting decent sopranos I doubt anyone good will be playing Sarah. We'll see though.

[doodlenyc]

Posted: 12/16/13 at 3:10pm

Gaga for Adelaide.

[Tom1071]

Posted: 12/16/13 at 3:26pm

I am amazed that Danny Strong has become such a Hollywood heavy hitter. Until he won the Emmy for Game Change, I had no clue that he was even a writer. Now he's got The Butler, Mockingjay and now this. It's pretty incredible. I remember him as Jonathan on Buffy the Vampire Slayer. Who knew? Good for him!

[Mister Matt]

Posted: 12/16/13 at 3:36pm

I can't imagine a scenario in which Alison Brie, Megan Hilty, or Annaleigh Ashford would be cast in arguably the best role in a multimillion movie musical

Sure they can. If the other three are A-listers, why not? Especially Megan Hilty, who has gotten more exposure from her television roles (regardless what BWW people think of the shows).

[Brave Sir Robin2]

Posted: 12/16/13 at 3:53pm

I would love Lady Gaga as Adelaide - perfect star casting with someone who is very appropriate for the role. If not, I would think if the other three stars are big, they could bring in Megan Hlty.

[wonkit]

Posted: 12/16/13 at 5:15pm

"Pen a remake"? OK, Danny Strong, put your hands up and step away from your computer.

[best12bars]

Posted: 12/16/13 at 5:35pm

The book to Guys and Dolls is one of the best for any musical ... that's ever.

Good luck doing better. Good luck making "improvements."

I hate modern egos. They're so proud of their gold medals, they have them bronzed.

[daisybeetle]

Posted: 12/16/13 at 5:41pm

If they do it, it should at least be multiracial.

[EricMontreal22]

Posted: 12/16/13 at 5:46pm

I think what I'd miss the most in a remake is the Kidd choreography--otherwise I agree with Pauline Kael that the male leads should have each played each others roles.

I also always think of Strong from his Buffy role and it seems weird to think of him as the genuinely accomplished writer he has become.

[PalJoey]

Posted: 12/16/13 at 6:00pm

The trap here is that the humor of the musical's book is Damon Runyon through the filter of Abe Burrows, which is not the same thing as the tone of the original Runyon.

Loesser's songs and Burrows's book fit perfectly. If you go back to the flavor of the original, the songs might not fit so well.